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Thursday, November 21, 2013

Let's be honest here, friendship and drug use quite often go hand in hand. One person's lifestyle will always affect those who are close to them, and whether or not that effect is positive is an important determination for the health of the relationship. Dependency and abuse are easy things to disparage, but until it involves someone you know and love it's impossible understand the complexities involved in dealing with those issues.

I'd never listened to Majical Cloudz before they opened for Youth Lagoon in my hometown early this year. The band name put me off initially, but vocalist Devon Welsh destroyed all doubt within moments of opening his mouth. Every word cut like serrated poetry; with an intense delivery recalling Ian Curtis of Joy Division, Welsh commanded the room.

During that set I heard "Savages," a previously unreleased tune about "a friendship, it’s mysteries and it’s moments of excitement, and the way drugs played into all of it." The band has now released a studio version of the song, and it's really remarkable.